


Sky Light

by PokeChan



Category: CLAMP - Works, Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle
Genre: Alternate Universe - Future, Canon-Typical Violence, Fantasy, Gen, IN SPACE!, Kidnapping, KuroFai Olympics 2016, M/M, Magical Science, Science Fiction, Space Pirates, Team Light, no one likes Seishirou and no one should ever trust him, scientific magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-06
Updated: 2016-08-06
Packaged: 2018-07-29 18:18:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7694557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PokeChan/pseuds/PokeChan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The universe is a dark place and light is a precious thing to come by, but humanity is not one to cower in the shadows and light will not forsake the life she so painstakingly created eons ago. Humanity learns to wield the magic of light and thus, they begin to illuminate the universe. They are not without opposition, though.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sky Light

**Author's Note:**

> My entry for 2016 KuroFai Olympics. I wanted this to have the same feel as a genre-baby between Disney's _Treasure Planet_ and _Atlantis_. My prompt was "Honor among thieves" ~~and if you're reading this before Aug 26 and would like to vote and score my fic please[follow this link to the KuroFai DW](http://kurofai.dreamwidth.org/91295.html).~~

_Once upon a time the Sun, Moon, and Stars became people, and as people, they became weak. Mere flickering candle flames shining in vain against the ever-present darkness._

* * * *

Micro-Planet Babylon-X was a bustling boon on the very edges of civilization. The Void stretched out, seemingly endless in its all consuming darkness to one side, a solid would-be wall of absolute darkness, and to the other the dimmest lights of the far off hubs and planets twinkled warmly. It was an outpost as much as it was a colony and as such it saw all manner of people. In turn, this forced the law enforcement to keep on their toes and to be ready for anything.

Kurogane had joined the ranks of Babylon-X’s pseudo-military, a division of the Federation that acted as a local police force on satellite planets and colonies, with childish ideas of adventure and heroics. He’d stayed in order to follow dreams of revenge. 

“Freeze! You’re under arrest!”

Nothing he had expected had panned out.

“Haha! You know, Kuro-cop, if you wanted to spend more time with me all you had to do was ask,” laughed the thief Kurogane was chasing after as he ducked into a thin alleyway between two apartment buildings. 

Known pirate, Fai D. Flourite was as kleptic as he was pretty - and the most prolific thief Babylon-X had ever known. He was sly, slippery, quick, and the biggest pain in Kurogane’s ass this side of the solar system. 

He and Fai had been playing cops and robbers for well over a year now. Kurogane nearly always caught him, managed to drag the skinny bastard to the station and fill out all the necessary paperwork only to have Fai released a few days later on technicalities that never made any sense to Kurogane. As much as Kurogane hated to admit it, Fai was a real charmer, which made him all the more dangerous to the public law and order.

Fai leapt up and scrambled onto a fire escape attached to an older apartment building. He fled upwards, towards the roof, with Kurogane hot on his heels, slowed down only by his bulk and the way he had to struggle through the small openings in the grates that Fai slipped through easily. 

In the end Fai got onto the roof a solid three stories ahead of Kurogane and when Kurogane finally pulled himself over the ledge he fully expected to find the rooftop deserted. To his surprise, though, he was faced with the image of Fai standing on a solar-glider several feet out into the open air, smiling at Kurogane while the sun and wind played through his hair, lighting it up gold. 

Dangerously charming, as beautiful as he was slick, and there was a small, treacherous part of Kurogane that was captivated by him.

“Better luck next time,” Fai purred. “Maybe our next date should be by moonlight.”

“What the hell do you mean date?!” Kurogane snapped, walking easily across the roof towards Fai, banter almost as familiar to him as his own name. It was unlikely that he’d be able to catch him with the solar-glider already mounted, but Kurogane always was one to try.

Fai laughed. “Well, what would you call them?”

“Repeat criminal offenses,” Kurogane answered flatly. 

“Such a romantic,” Fai said with an amused shake of his head. “We’ll work on that, but for now, it’s time for me to go, Kuro--”

Everything happened within seconds. A shrill sound shrieked through the air and the world around them trembled. The sun flared violently bright, blinding Kurogane, and then it was suddenly gone. Cursing, he tried to regain his sight against the sudden blackness. Once he could see more than blurry shadows he looked up and all that remained in the sky were the stars. 

There was no time for Kurogane to wonder what had just occurred because no sun meant Fai’s solar-glider was useless. He heard the machinery stutter pathetically as Fai tried to get back towards the rooftop. Kurogane wasn’t sure where he found the speed to reach out in time to catch Fai’s hand before he fell to what would surely have been his death, but there he was, clutching to Fai as he dangled helplessly fifteen stories above the ground over the side of the rooftop with nothing but Kurogane’s strength and a feeble guardrail keeping them both from tumbling to the ground.

For a moment they didn’t move, didn’t even breathe. They looked at each other and held on. Then, the entire world seemed to explode with sound and Kurogane hurried to pull Fai back to the roof where they collapsed in an inelegant pile of limbs, Kurogane flat on his back and Fai on top of him, all but sitting in his lap and completely stunned. He didn’t even protest when Kurogane pushed for him to get off. 

Fai sat there, understandably startled and heaving deep breaths, while Kurogane stood and peered out across the city. Everything that had been solar powered was quickly sputtering out, pinpoints of light dying like snuffed out candles. It was horrifying. There was no reason this should have been happening. Even when night came and the sun rested the moon was there, shining her delicate light onto the city and keeping it alive. Now, the only thing keeping them from being swallowed back into the Void were the stars.

“Is it a Blight?” Fai asked, finally getting to his feet. He was staring up at the sky, blue eyes wide and Kurogane felt a cold weight in the pit of his stomach when he saw the fear in them as well. “I thought those were just mindless rumors…”

“What!” Kurogane pulled Fai around to face him. “What do you mean Blight rumors? What have you heard?”

Shocked, Fai didn’t even try to resist. “Rumors! Nothing substantial! And nothing worth risking a serious arrest by reporting it. There are always baseless rumors floating around the Outer. It’s practically impossible to tell what’s legitimate and what isn’t.”

“A Blight isn’t something to just ignore, pirate!” Kurogane barked. “They aren’t some rumor or scary bedtime story! They are real and dangerous!” He grabbed Fai by his shirt and pulled him close and growled, “Now tell me. Exactly. What. You. Heard.”

* * * *

The information Fai had given him had been next to useless, which Kurogane supposed went towards explaining why he hadn’t said anything to anyone who could have done something. Knowing that did nothing to quell Kurogane’s fury, however. He’d lost family to a Blight before, one that had never been destroyed. He didn’t need to lose more.

The Celestial Temple was swarming with Babylon-X investigators. He noted a distinct lack of body bags and homicide officers, which he took a great amount of comfort in. It looked like the entire base had come to poke around the scene of the crime, though, not to mention the crowds of civilians that were barely being kept at bay by the holo-gates and management droids. Kurogane wasn’t surprised though, the light produced and distributed by the Sun, Moon, and Stars was what kept them from being swallowed by the Void of space and becoming nothing. The light was life in its purest and most basic form.

“Souma!” Kurogane called across the atrium of the temple. “Do we know what happened yet? Are the Stars okay?”

Souma, Senior Chief and Kurogane’s superior, turned and frowned before shooing off two forensic members. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised to see you hear right away,” she said, sounding tired and put upon. 

“There isn’t a single reason I wouldn’t be here,” he said. Souma knew very well his connection to the Moon, and even to the Sun and Stars to their own degrees. She had no reason to think he would not take this case seriously and personally.

“I’m not assigning this case to you in any form,” she said. “It’s too personal, you know that.”

“You can’t be serious,” he said, dumbfounded. “My sister is missing! And you’re not going to let me help find her?!”

“I’m sorry, Kurogane, but you know the policy about personal involvement and conflict of interest. I’ve got my best teams working this case, we’ll find the Sun and Moon.”

With that, Souma patted his shoulder and walked off, already dealing out orders. Kurogane watched her go until she was lost in the sea of bodies and chaos. When he could no longer pick her out he turned and left. If Souma wasn’t going to let him work on this case as the badge holding law enforcer he was then he’d find his sister on his own. Resources didn’t make the man, how he used what he had did. And Kurogane knew how to work with what little he could find.

Finding was going to be the hard part.

* * * *

Kurogane had never formally gone looking for Fai and whoever it was he ran with -- and Kurogane was positive he ran with a crew, he’d seen their silhouettes and heard the murmur of their voices enough to know that Fai rarely pulled a heist solo -- he’d only kept an eye out whenever he’d had reason to go down to the piers, but he figured that would be his best bet, even if he’d never seen Fai there. He was willing to venture a guess at Fai rounding up his crew and moving on to greener, less Blight-ridden pastures. 

The piers and ports were chaotic when Kurogane arrived. Families and merchants and all manner of civilians were flocking to interstellar ships with everything they could carry. Kurogane couldn’t blame them. As he watched a harried looking mother usher a trio of young children up the gangplank, each of them tottering slowly, burdened with bags too big for their tiny frames he remembered the last time he’d seen the Sun and Moon vanish from the sky. The worst day of his life.

He refused to dwell on the past, not when the present was in so much danger. 

The world around him was dim. Most lights had been extinguished with the disappearance of the Sun and Moon. Any lights that shone were emergency lights, run on archaic power sources that Kurogane was amazed still worked. The brightest lights came from the ships, each of which was equipped with a solar reservoir, allowing for long trips through the shadowy Outer in between planets and colonies. In the end, it was this that tipped Kurogane off to the whereabouts of his pirates.

The light of the ships were a beacon to the frightened masses who swarmed to them like moths to flame, which, in turn, meant that any areas covered with shadow were sure to be ignored by nearly everyone. 

There weren’t many milling about the darkened ship, though the four or five people Kurogane saw walking about didn’t signify how many more might already be on the ship. None of them were Fai, though, so Kurogane remained hidden behind a stack of crates. The last thing he needed was to get held up in a pointless brawl. He didn’t have the time, Tomoyo’s trail was growing colder by the second.

“It’s no use,” came a voice from the ship. “The old system won’t integrate with the ship’s. Unless we manage to get our own little sunspot we aren’t going anywhere.”

Fai stepped off the ship, disappointment and frustration evident on his face, even from where Kurogane watched. The crew began trying to think of other ways to get their ship moving. Part of Kurogane felt betrayed that Fai was trying to run. There was no reason for such an emotion. Even if Fai _had_ known that the Moon was Kurogane’s sister, he was under no obligation to help, or even stay planetside. Fai was his own man, a criminal one, but a man of his own all the same. He could do what he liked, and Kurogane had no hold on him for anything.

“It’s useless,” said a boy, easily several years younger than Kurogane. He kicked the side of the ship in frustration. “If we can’t get the ship to run what are we supposed to do?”

Fai shrugged, running a thin hand through tousled hair. “Hope that the Stars can keep giving us light until someone else finds the Sun and Moon.”

Wait…

“No way!” said the boy, his voice edging on hysteria. “The Sun is part of my clan! We have to find her!”

That alone was enough to have Kurogane stepping out of the shadows and into the thin light of the lanterns the pirates held. Each of them gave a start, two even pulled weapons, ready for a fight, but Fai only smiled, surprised as he was, and waved merrily to Kurogane. “Kuro-tan! Hello!”

He made his way cheerily towards Kurogane while the others watched on in clear confusion and exasperation. Kurogane had to admit it was somewhat gratifying to learn that Fai wasn’t only a pain in the ass to him.

“You’re going to try and track down the Sun and Moon?” Kurogane asked, cutting right to the point.

“Yes. A friend of mine knows the Sun personally, and waiting on the authorities to get their act together and send out search parties is a waste of precious time,” Fai told him, eyeing Kurogane curiously. It wasn’t quite distrust he saw in those frustratingly captivating eyes, but they did narrow as Fai considered him. “Why do you ask?”

“I’m coming with you,” was all Kurogane said before stepping around Fai and heading towards the ship.

The rest of the crew watched him in stunned silence, but Fai just fell into step with him. “I’d be happy to have you join us, but we won’t be doing anything but sitting on this ship unless we can get a solar power source.”

Kurogane turned and looked Fai up and down. “Do you have any idea of where to start looking?”

“Yes.”

“This ship is supplied well enough to make what could be a lengthy trip?”

“Always.”

“Everything is well maintained and in proper working order?”

“Ship and crew alike,” said Fai cheerfully.

He shouldn’t be doing this, Kurogane told himself. These were pirates: disloyal, untrustworthy criminals. For all he knew the crew would jump and kill him as soon as he returned with the solar power. This was all kinds of wrong and Kurogane knew he could be court martialed for simply being among these people and not attempting to arrest them.

Wrong though it was, it was strange how none of it _felt_ wrong. Kurogane supposed it didn’t matter one way or the other. His sister needed him, all of Babylon-X needed their Sun and Moon, and these pirates needed his help.

“I’ll get you your solar power,” he said. He might have had only half a plan as to how he was going to do so, but he was damn well going to return with a way to move that ship.

“Before you go, I have a question,” Fai said, and the tone of his voice was something Kurogane had never heard from him. “If you work alongside us, you follow our code and our rules. Are you going to be able to do that, officer? Live like a pirate?”

Kurogane looked evenly at Fai, red eyes meeting blue, and answered. “I will do anything it takes to save my sister’s life. Don’t doubt that for even a second.” And with only enough time to register the surprise on Fai’s face, Kurogane turned and left. 

* * * *

He had one bet on where to find a useable source of solar energy and that was within the walls of the temple where the Stars still stood, keeping Babylon-X from toppling into the Void.

Kurogane was familiar with the temple and he had known the Stars for years. She was like a second sister to him and he felt guilty that her safety held so little comfort to him in the face of their current peril. Still, he was glad she was safe. He used that fact to soften his eyes and voice enough for the posted guard to let him through. The guards and sages knew him as well. He’d practically been raised in these halls and it was the closest thing to home that he had been able to find. 

His footsteps echoed around him and made the temple feel more like a dungeon than the holy place of magic it was. Normally, the temple was a place filled with light and noise, sages tending to their duties, the three Celestials laughing and weaving their magic in the grand room. Now there was nothing but a handful of guard droids hovering through the halls.

The door opened easily, moving smoothly aside as Kurogane entered the grand room. Two of the three pedestals stood dark and empty, looking almost decrepit in the shadows. The third pedestal was lit, a soft and golden glow like the gentlest of lanterns in the night. 

Kurogane had known the Stars since before she was the Stars, and alone like this he addressed her as such. “Sakura?”

“Kurogane-san!” The relief and fondness in Sakura’s voice was enough to break Kurogane’s heart a little. She was usually such a bright and energetic girl you might have thought her the very sun in the sky itself. 

She leapt from her pedestal with ease and floated with ageless grace to the floor where Kurogane stood waiting. She all but flung herself at him in a tearful hug. She must have been so lonely here alone, without even the sages to keep her company. He returned her embrace, held her close and safe for a full minute before he needed to get to the matter of his visit.

“I’m glad you’re alright,” he said, pulling away to look her in the face.

Sweet, green eyes shimmered with unshed tears as she offered him a watery smile. “Thank you. I’m sorry I couldn’t help keep Tomoyo-chan safe. Or Meiling-chan. I couldn’t do anything…”

Kurogane lifted Sakura’s chin gently. “You can do something now,” he told her. “I’m going to find them, but the ship needs solar energy. I was hoping you’d be able to siphon some off into something I could take with me.”

Everything in Sakura practically buzzed at Kurogane’s words. A smile broke onto her face and she took one of his large hands in both of her tiny ones. “I can do you one better! Take me with you! I can power the ship!”

“What? No! You have to stay here! Babylon-X needs you to keep the stars shining. If the Stars leave the Void will claim this place in no time.”

Sakura only smiled and the way she did it -- the wisdom, the patience, the amusement -- reminded him painfully of both of their mothers. “I can leave the stars here, shining on until we return.”

Disbelief warred against hope inside of Kurogane as he watched Sakura return to her pedestal and summon her staff, a mighty looking thing taller than Kurogane. He watched as she poured magic and light into it until the staff was as bright as any sun. She left it to stand in her place, shining like a beacon and forcing away the encroaching shadows. 

“Kero-chan, Yue-san,” she called. 

Two creatures appeared from the empty pedestals and glided to Sakura’s side. One was a small winged lion that looked more like a child’s toy than anything mighty enough to reside in the Celestial Temple. The other was a silver bird, about the same size as the other creature, that looked like it was cut from a beam of moonlight and given life. 

“Guard this staff, it holds most of my magic and it’s what is keeping the stars lit,” her tone was firm, but not unkind. That of a born leader, with a steady mind and a strong heart. “I will return with Tomoyo-chan and Meiling-chan.”

The way she said it made it sound like Sakura had no intention of returning without the Sun and Moon by her side once more, and honestly, Kurogane felt much the same. He wasn’t proud of it, but he knew that, if it guaranteed Tomoyo’s safety, he would let this colony fall into the Void without hesitation.

“You got it, Sakura!” the lion said.

“You have our word,” the bird spoke.

“Now there’s just one problem left,” Sakura said, lowering herself again. She moved as she spoke, heading through a small door behind curtains of glimmering fabric. Kurogane waited, listening to the sounds of Sakura fussing this way and that with something. “I’m not permitted to leave, even more so now with the others missing.”

It was a rare event that one of the Celestials went further than the temple’s courtyard, let alone anywhere else. The magic they wove in the sky was delicate and in order to easily maintain it they needed to stay close. With the danger of the Stars possibly falling like the Sun and Moon Kurogane wasn’t surprised to hear that Sakura was essentially under lock and key. It would be tricky work sneaking out past not only the guards up front, but all of the droids patrolling the halls.

If he had more time he could pattern out their patrol, but that would take hours to get right and every second was precious. The only other way out was through the high up windows, it was a climb Kurogane could manage, but perhaps a bit rough for Sakura.

When Sakura reappeared from her chambers she was dressed like any other port girl with clunky boots and sturdy overalls. There was a bag slung over one shoulder and her hair was sticking out from under her cap like stray bits of coppery hay where she’d clearly tried to shove it all up and away.

With a smile full of mischief more suited for Tomoyo’s face than her own, Sakura came to stand next to Kurogane and looked up at the windows. “Ready to steal the stars?”

* * * *

If Kurogane said he wasn’t surprised that the pirates were still there waiting for him and hadn’t fled to avoid capture he would be lying. 

Several other crew members had come off the ship and were all sitting around each other, deep in conversation. The boy from earlier was chatting with a young pair of pirates, similar enough in looks that Kurogane was positive they were siblings. Fai was a little closer to the ship laughing at something a man with glasses and a cigarette had said while another man next to him simply shook his head good naturedly. 

All eyes soon turned to Kurogane and Sakura as they drew close.

“I thought you were going to get a solar power source,” Fai said. “Not a cute girl. This is going to be dangerous. She’s going to get hurt, and I refuse to be part of that.” Fai stood straight and tall, hands on his hips and looked Kurogane in the eye. “I won’t put this girl in needless danger.”

“It would be best if you just left us the solar source,” said the man with glasses, as he put out his cigarette. “You look like a sweet girl, you don’t need to be hanging around a bunch of pirates.”

Kurogane could sense that Sakura was undaunted, which was just as well, considering that she _couldn’t_ leave the solar source and go back to the temple. 

“Seishirou’s right, dear,” Fai tried, smiling winsomely at Sakura. “This is no place for a young lady.” From behind Fai one of the siblings tried poorly to stifle a laugh prompting Fai to add, “Especially an untrained one.”

Daintily, and with great purpose, Sakura cleared her throat. “I know my way around a ship, sir,” she said. “And I’ll be leaving nothing with you unless I’m aboard that ship. They are my Sun and Moon as well, and I’ll see them safe or die trying.”

There was steel in her voice and a fire in her eyes that made Kurogane proud to know her. Fai, for his part, seemed equal parts surprised and amused. Kurogane was sure that it wasn’t every day that a young lady walked up to your pirate ship and bargained for a ride in order to save her colony. 

“Haha! Oh, I like her,” said the other man by Fai. He was scarred up and about as tall as Kurogane and possibly even broader. He seemed like a friendly enough man, much like Fai himself in that regard. “Look at her face - we’re not going to convince her, might as well take her along.”

Fai must have agreed because he sighed before smiling at Sakura again, softer and more genuine this time. “Well then, my lady,” and here he bowed deeply. “I am Captain Fai D. Flourite, at your service. This is Kusanagi, my first mate,” Fai said, gesturing to the scarred man. “And Seishirou, our resident doctor.”

The rest of the introductions happened on board. Kurogane had been right to guess that the two younger pirates were related. They were twins, Subaru, who was quiet and polite, and Hokuto, who was loud and playful and flirting none-too-subtly with Sakura. They had run away from home ages ago, but had only joined Fai’s crew within the last year.

The other boy was not a pirate at all, though Syaoran regularly dealt with Fai, appraising loot for him, though in exchange for what Kurogane could only guess once he was assured, quite frantically, that Syaoran never took money. He seemed like a determined young man, though a little wet behind the ears and naive. 

“So, you know the Sun?” Sakura asked Syaoran as Fai lead them down to the engine room. 

Syaoran nodded. “She’s my cousin, we grew up together,” he told her. “Our clan has been connected to the Sun for generations, but no one was willing to try to go find her, so I decided to find her myself. Fai-san was kind enough to offer his ship.”

“I’m so sorry,” she offered, placing a hesitant hand on Syaoran’s shoulder. 

He smiled and thanked her and Kurogane could see his cheeks burning, even under the dim, archaic lights of the corridor. “Do you know any of the Celestials? I can’t imagine someone would just climb aboard a pirate ship for some strangers.”

“Oi! How much further do we have to go?” Kurogane barked, cutting Sakura’s answer off. He hadn’t told her to keep it a secret, but the fewer people who knew, the better.

“Just around the next corner,” Fai said. 

The ship clanked and groaned, their steps echoing against the metal floor. It was fairly obvious that any repairs on the ship were patchwork at best. Supplies were undoubtedly cobbled together as they could get their hands on them and used as best as possible. It didn’t seem shoddy though, and the mix-and-match care of the ship gave it a home-like feeling, rather than made it seem like a rusted hunk of junk. It felt loved. 

The engine room was a small, empty spot. Dust covered most surfaces and everything looked largely untouched.

“We don’t usually go deep into the Outer, so our solar sails are usually enough to get us where we need to go,” Fai explained. “My fault really for not having a backup source in case of emergency.”

“Okay, Sakura will do her thing, let’s go make sure this thing is ready to move,” Kurogane said, attempting to get the others out of the engine room.

“No, no. I wanna see what she has. We couldn’t find anything to work with this thing,” Fai said, leaning against the wall next to the door, watching them and clearly skeptical that Sakura actually had a way to get the ship moving. “And I’ve never seen a solar source small enough to fit in a knapsack.”

Sakura winced and glanced up at Kurogane, who could only shrug, unable to think of a way to get out of this.

“Well, you’re right about it not being able to fit in my knapsack,” she said. “I’m much too large to get in there.”

The silence in the room all but buzzed as Sakura’s words sunk in.

The uncharacteristic sternness that had fallen over Fai shattered like broken glass as soon as he realized exactly who Sakura was. 

She stepped up amidst the silence and took in a deep breath. As she exhaled her skin took on a shimmering glow, as if all the stars in the galaxy were shining from just under her surface, twinkling brightly and illuminating the entire engine room. Slowly, each light on her skin slid towards her palms and collected there until Sakura was holding a miniature sun in her hands. 

Looking proud but tired, Sakura gave her light over to the engine. It sputtered to life and the whole ship lurched into motion. They were on their way.

Syaoran lead Sakura to the bunks where she could rest after expending what little of her magic was left while Kurogane and Fai hung back. 

“You have something to say?” Kurogane asked as soon as he heard the heavy door shut behind the three youngsters.

“The _Stars_!?” Fai hissed. “You not only brought a young lady on to the ship, but you brought the Stars who are keeping this colony from falling into the Void?”

Kurogane shrugged. It was a risky idea, he knew that, but he trusted Sakura’s judgement, and it was riskier still to not search for the Sun and Moon at all.

“Are you being this irrational because your sister is the Moon?” Fai asked, and it sounded far more compassionate than Kurogane expected. When he looked over at Fai in surprise Fai continued. “I had no idea you knew her. Has your family always been close to the Moon?”

Kurogane shook his head. “No, our mother was only the second of our clan to become the Moon. She wasn’t well respected because of that, and Tomoyo even more so for being so young upon Ascension. She would have had more time to train and learn, but most of our clan was caught up in an attack by a Blight. She’s all the family I have left now.”

Quickly, Kurogane snapped his mouth shut and shook his head. “I don’t know why I’m telling you all of this. I haven’t spoken about this in years.”

Indeed, Tomoyo was a blossoming young woman now rather than a small bud of waning light. It’d been over a decade since Kurogane had ever volunteered this information to anyone, let alone some slippery thief with pretty eyes.

Fai was quiet as he stepped up next to Kurogane and leaned against his side. “When I was a child my entire world was taken by a Blight, at least I think it was, I don’t really remember, some say it was a battle, some say other things. All I know is that I was saved by a crew of pirates. They took me in and raised me like one of their own,” Fai said. “Only two hundred people escaped before the Void swallowed up Celes.”

Kurogane wasn’t sure what to do with a confession like that. He believed Fai. Losing your world to a Blight, well, it wasn’t something someone lied about, not like this. Fai was looking down, eyes hidden behind sunshine colored hair. The mood between them was somber, but not uncomfortable. It felt strange. Kurogane should have felt completely out of place on a ship like this, as if he could be attacked and killed at any moment, but he didn’t. If anything he felt… safe. 

“Let’s head to the deck and make sure everything is on course,” Fai said, with grating cheer. And just like that, the soft enchantment of the moment was broken and the reality around them came crashing back down. Fai made his way down the hall and, for lack of a better option, Kurogane followed after, back through the maze-like hull and up on to the modestly sized deck of the ship.

There were a handful more people buzzing around the illuminated deck than Kurogane had been introduced to, but he supposed he didn’t overly care about getting to know any of them. He followed Fai up to the cabin where the control panel was and where Kusanagi was inputting coordinates at what seemed to be random to Kurogane. 

“If we’re lucky,” he said once Fai had closed the cabin door behind Kurogane. “We’ll be able to pick up a trail of their solar magic and track them down.”

“And if we’re not lucky?” Kurogane asked.

Kusanagi sent him a rueful smile. “Back to the drawing board then.”

He didn’t like that answer, but Kurogane himself was woefully useless for interstellar tracking. He’d been trained on and for Babylon-X and if he’d ever wanted more training he would have had to transfer to another micro-planet or training satellite, and he’d simply never been willing to leave Tomoyo.

“Is there anything that would make this plan work better?” Fai asked, peering around Kusanagi’s broad shoulders to examine the control panel.

He shrugged. “If we had some celestial-level solar magic to give us a signal to lock onto we’d be able to pick up even a faint trail,” Kusanagi said. “But I doubt anyone’s going to be able to get anywhere near the Stars now.”

Kurogane fully expected Fai to tell his first mate that the Stars were, in fact, on board with them right now. To his surprise, however, Fai carried on as if Sakura hadn’t revealed herself to him less than an hour ago. He finished listening to Kusanagi’s status report and told him to alert Fai and Kurogane right away when he eventually managed to find the trail.

Again, Kurogane’s expectations were wrong when he thought, for sure, that Kusanagi would ask Fai why he was being instructed to inform some stranger, an officer even, but the question never came. He hadn’t even hesitated when Fai had given the instructions.

There was a difference between a well-trained subordinate, a yes-man, and someone who honestly agreed with the orders he was given. Kurogane didn’t have the chance to ask Fai about it until they left Kusanagi and were making their way towards where Sakura would be resting.

“Hey,” and the softness of his voice surprised him. “What was that, back there?”

Fai smiled at him, patient and amused and too familiar for Kurogane to face head on. “Despite what you might think, Kuro-cop, I’m not a bad person. I wasn’t going to go off and tell the entire ship who Sakura-chan really is. Your world is awfully black and white, you should try trusting me a little more.”

It was Kurogane’s first instinct to tell Fai he was already putting far more trust into him than he was comfortable with, but that wasn’t necessarily true. Once Souma had denied Kurogane the chance to look for Tomoyo through proper legal means Fai had been the very first person he had turned to next.

Sure, Kurogane might not have had an extensive web of friends and all of his colleagues were out of the question, but Fai was a thief, a pirate, a man Kurogane had spent ages attempting to arrest and imprison. He didn’t understand it. And then it struck him, like lightning.

“How long have we been friends?” he asked a bit distantly.

Fai’s laugh was good-natured and his eyes glowed in the magic-fueled light. “A while, Kuro-puu, a while.”

“That doesn’t explain your first mate being perfectly fine with me being around,” Kurogane pointed out as they moved deeper into the hull of the ship.

“Huh? What, Kusanagi?” Fai asked. He stopped and faced Kurogane. “You’re with us right now,” he said. “You’re one of us for however long it takes to bring the Sun and Moon back. We have a code, all thieves do. Part of that code is to trust a fellow until they give you a reason to distrust them. The world is against people like us, so we’re all the support we have. Even if you go back to being an officer, for now, we’re all on equal ground.” When Fai finished he took a step closer to Kurogane and smiled up at him. “Plus, you’re the only one who didn’t know we were friendly,” he said with a wink, before continuing down the corridor. 

Needless to say, hearing something like that had piqued Kurogane’s curiosity. “What does this code of yours entail? Since I’m supposed to be following it,” he added.

According to Fai there were many levels and intricacies to the Thief’s Code. There were, however, several simple rules that no one with a brain in their head or a heart in their chest broke.

The poor and poverty stricken were never stolen from, and if anything were left gifts that could be spared from a heist. Things stolen were stolen from the source, it was considered honorless to rob a shop or selling table. The innocent were never harmed, especially so for children.

The golden rule, one that would blacklist a thief until the end of their days, was that you never, ever stole from another thief. Yes, rivalries were had between ships and guilds, but to steal something from one another, well, that way madness lay. It wasn’t a rule, it was a law amongst them. It was what kept order on their side of life. 

Kurogane had more questions, but they’d reached the room where Sakura was supposed to be resting and he had a feeling he’d have more time to ask Fai about all of this later.

“Knock, knock!” Fai chimed, opening the door. “How are you feeling Sakur- oh! Seishirou!”

The doctor that Fai had introduced Kurogane to earlier was in the room along with Sakura and Syaoran. He smiled and greeted Fai and Kurogane, and then turned his attention back to Sakura. 

“A good night’s sleep and a big breakfast will do you wonders,” he said kindly, packing up a handful of medical instruments that had been lying on the bed. “You’ll get your sea legs before too long,” he finished, chuckling at his own joke as he stood up.

“Thank you, Seishirou-san!” Sakura treated him to a smile as he left, waving goodbye.

Kurogane couldn’t put his finger on it, but he didn’t trust the man. “What was that all about?”

“We passed Seishirou-san on our way here,” Syaoran offered as Sakura yawned wide. “He helped us get Sakura-san to bed and checked her over.”

Sakura rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. “Sorry for all the trouble, I really will be fine after some rest though, I knew I was pushing my limits.”

“Does the doctor know now, too?” Kurogane asked, still distrusting Seishirou. He tried not to be obvious about it, knowing full well he had no reason to be suspicious but unable to ignore his instincts all the same.

“No, I told him I was feeling weak because I’d never been on a ship like this before,” Sakura explained.

Fai laughed a little. “In fairness, Sakura-chan, _no one’s_ ever been on a ship like this.” Kurogane supposed that was true; the ship was mismatched enough that it was practically a custom model. 

“Get some rest,” Kurogane said, setting his hand atop Sakura hair and ruffling it gently. “When you wake up we’re going to need your help to track the others, and that’s something you need to be at full strength for.” Then he turned to Syaoran. “And you, kid, get lost and keep your mouth shut,” he snapped. “If you’re clan is involved with the Celestials I don’t have to tell you how stupid it would be to go outing her.”

Syaoran’s response was an earnest and energetic (bordering on frantic really) “Yes, sir!”

Syaoran left, but not before a stammering and pink-cheeked goodbye to Sakura along with an offer for assistance should she need it. Fai left not long after and Kurogane wasn’t sure if he’d imagined the lingering gaze or not. He decided to ignore it either way.

“Get some sleep, princess. We’ve got a big morning ahead of us.”

* * * *

Fai was alone at the control panel when Kurogane found him. Most of the crew had gone to bed already. Even without the sun, they could all tell the hour was late. In the Outer one’s internal clock was finely tuned. 

“Couldn’t sleep, Kuro-sama?” Fai asked without looking up from the holomap. He looked frustrated with something. 

“What’s wrong?”

With a sigh Fai stepped to the side to make space for Kurogane to move seamlessly to his side. “It might be because we’re running on Sakura-chan’s magic, but there’s no trace of the Sun or Moon, nothing at all. Even if we couldn’t pick up a trail we should have been able to see something, a blip.”

“Do you really think it’s Sakura’s magic causing this?” Kurogane asked. Fai had never acted like she would interfere with the tracking systems.

Crossing his arms Fai tapped his foot. “It’s the only thing I can think of. According to all of our scanners the Sun and Moon just vanished from existence.” Shaking his head Fai closed out the holomap. “I’ll calibrate when Kusanagi wakes up. I’m awful at manual steering.”

Kurogane raised an eyebrow. “Captain of a ship and pirate crew, most prolific thief to ever dock at Babylon-X, and the biggest pain in my ass and you can’t pilot an interstellar ship?”

“No one’s perfect,” Fai quipped.

“Hmph, learning all sorts of things on this trip,” Kurogane said. 

Fai leaned in closer, his thin frame fit perfectly against Kurogane. “Aw, you thought I was perfect?” Neither of them mentioned it when Kurogane put his arm around Fai.

“Don’t put words in my mouth, thief,” Kurogane huffed.

The curve of Fai’s smile was wicked when he glanced up at Kurogane. “Is there something else you’d rather have me put in your mouth?” At that Kurogane sputtered and lurched back. “Haha! What, would you prefer I buy you dinner first?”

“Depends,” Kurogane said slowly. “Would you actually buy it?”

Fai stepped back into Kurogane’s space, chest to chest with him. “Of course,” Fai purred. “It’s against code to steal food you don’t need, and besides, I’m trying to impress someone.”

“You and yours aren’t the depraved bunch of crooks I thought you would be,” Kurogane said, voice practically a whisper as he leaned closer to Fai. “I’m already a bit impressed.”

Fai’s only response to that was to pull Kurogane down so that their lips met. 

His lips were soft and sweet and they fit against Kurogane’s like a puzzle piece. It was easy, thoughtless, to put his hands on Fai’s hips and hold him there, pressed against Kurogane with nothing but their increasingly intrusive clothes between them. A small part of Kurogane still hissed that Fai was not to be trusted, that he was a thief and a criminal, but Kurogane was slowly beginning to see that Fai and his crew were following their own set of laws. They may not have been the same as the laws Kurogane swore by, but they were honorable all the same.

Slowly, the kiss eased, and they pulled back enough to look each other in the eye. Kurogane could feel the tips of his ears burning and there was pink riding high on Fai’s cheekbones, that sly mouth swollen and soft. It looked good on him. Fai opened his mouth to say something, but at that moment door opened and in spilled a frazzled Hokuto. 

“Captain! Captain, have you seen Subaru?”

Fai blinked owlishly at her for a second before composing himself, stepping away from Kurogane and straightening up with a cough. “Uhh, no, I haven’t. What’s all the fuss about?”

Hokuto only spared Kurogane a split second’s glance before rattling off a needlessly winding story about what her brother had been up to that day. “And then he said he was going to go see Seishirou, but that was hours ago and I did a cursory scan of the ship, but he and Seishirou didn’t come up.”

That wasn’t normal. Even the cheapest, shoddiest life scanners would be able to find all humanoid life signatures on a ship of this size. Kurogane was no mechanical engineer, but he knew something wasn’t right and Fai seemed to be thinking the same thing. 

“Was everyone else accounted for?” Fai asked. 

“That’s the thing,” Hokuto said. “It said we have two extra passengers, but I added Kurogane-san and Sakura-san to the roster myself.”

“And I added Syaoran-kun…” Fai said.”This doesn’t add up. If you couldn’t find Seishirou _or_ Subaru-kun then we should still be two short.”

Suddenly, something occurred to Kurogane. “Who does the patchwork on this ship?”

“Wha- Everyone does some work here and there,” Fai said. “We’ve worked together on this for years.”

“Do you have something capable of doing a better scan than the one she used?”

“It’s in the Medical Bay,” Hokuto said, already on her way out. Both Kurogane and Fai followed at her heels.

“Kuro-tan, what are you planning?” Fai demanded, eyes hard and calculating, no trace of humor or playfulness. This was Fai the pirate captain, Fai the master thief. All business now that something on his ship was amiss.

“If I’m right, I’ve just discovered who your two stowaways are and why your scanners couldn’t track the Sun and Moon.”

He would have also found the Blight that took his sister. 

Hokuto was the first one there and she pulled open the door to the Medical Bay with enough force that Kurogane was sure he heard something crack. All of the lights were shut off and the machinery was quiet. Hokuto set about switching the necessary panels on, all the while muttering dangerous threats to whatever might have hurt her “precious baby brother”. The pure rage in her words was enough to have Kurogane believing she was fully capable of carrying out each of her threats with terrifying precision. 

With the screens illuminated and the drives humming Hokuto began a full scan of the ship. Each and every nook and cranny would be scanned and everyone on the ship would be readily identified. 

Within minutes Kurogane’s theory was proven correct. Three humanoid life signs were shown to be sitting behind the far wall of the Medbay. Without waiting for the scan to finish Kurogane kicked the flimsy sheet of metal down to reveal something he hadn’t exactly been expecting.

Subaru was cuffed to a bit of piping looking worse for wear. One eye was swollen shut, already an ugly purple, and his lip was cut and slowly bleeding. Hokuto was at his side in seconds, but Kurogane had no eyes for the pair of twins, there, strapped to a chair, eyes wide and absolutely frantic, was Tomoyo.

The first thing he did was ungag her while Fai tended to releasing the Sun. 

“Tomoyo! Are you okay? Who did this to you? I swear I’ll gut the bastard.”

“Kurogane, listen, you have to run it’s-”

“Honestly,” came a voice from behind them. “Kids these days have absolutely no sense of privacy. First Subaru and now you all.”

Seishirou stood there, poise lax and face the perfect image of a disappointed parent. Kurogane felt his blood boil. He _knew_ there had been something wrong with that guy. Seishirou pointed a stun pistol at them, almost casually, and Kurogane moved on instinct to shield Tomoyo from the line of fire and he saw Fai do the same for Meiling out of the corner of his eye. This wasn’t going to be easy. 

“You’re making this so much more difficult than it needs to be.”

There was a flash and every nerve in Kurogane caught alight, burning beneath his skin. The only thing he heard before unconsciousness took him was Tomoyo crying out his name.

* * * *

Kurogane came to feeling like he had been hit by an asteroid. Every inch of him was screaming in pain, his vision blurring around the edges with no sign of letting up. They were all on deck, the rest of the crew was there too, each of them bound like Kurogane was, some beaten bloody, others just a little bruised up. It was clear they’d all tried to fight.

“You honorless bastard!” Kurogane heard Fai shout. He was several feet away from Kurogane, tangled in chains that were bolted to the deck. “Do you have any idea how many people you’ve put in danger? And for what, a _ransom_?”

Seishirou looked infuriatingly unperturbed, smiling down at where Fai was kneeling. “No, nothing so mundane,” he said. “You see, the Sun and Moon are forever at odds with each other, one a glorified ball of gas, the other a useless, shiny rock. Theirs is a delicate balancing act, one tempered by the Stars. 

“I had been content enough to watch the two of them destroy each other once they inevitably lost control of their magic, meanwhile knowing how the Stars were struggling to keep her precious micro-planet out of the Void. This though,” and it was then that Kurogane saw Sakura tied up just like Tomoyo and Meiling. “This is possibly even better. The Sun and Moon can watch their Stars die and know that they will soon follow by their own unruly powers.”

Fai’s face was sheet white and his eyes were wide with disbelief. His head shook slowly from side to side. “No… you can’t… you can’t be serious. Why? _Why_!?”

Seishirou shrugged and turned away from Fai, but Kurogane knew why. “It’s all a Blight knows, destruction. It’s the closest thing to pleasure it can feel.”

What members of the crew that were conscious looked up at Seishirou in renewed horror. Blights were a mystery to everyone. Some thought they were pieces of the Void that had gained sentience and only knew the drive to reclaim the places that the Federation had Illuminated. A few whispered that they were a culmination of the galaxy’s hatred acting the only way it knew how, other believed a Blight was the spirit of someone wrongly killed that was seeking revenge against all life. One thing that everyone knew without question was that a Blight was dangerous, crafty, and killed like other creatures breathed.

Seishirou turned his face towards Kurogane, still smiling serenely, as if he were just walking in a park on a breezy summer day. “A little dramatic, but not incorrect. It’s not that I haven’t tried, you see,” Seishirou said, grabbing Sakura by the collar of her shirt and yanking her to her feet. “It’s simply that I find this to be the best use of my time.”

“GET AWAY FROM HER!” Kurogane roared, pulling uselessly against the ties. 

The only thing he heard was Sakura calling his name before a mighty wind whipped across the deck, screaming through the air. When Kurogane could open his eyes again without fear that they’d be torn out by the sudden gale Seishirou was crouched down half way across the deck and Fai was standing between him and the rest of the crew and Celestials.

“So, you do have magic of your own,” Seishirou said as he stood. “I thought the chains would have been enough, but I’ve clearly underestimated you.”

“That’ll be the last mistake you ever make, Seishirou,” Fai spat. With an almost careless flick of his wrist more wind was summoned, cutting through the ropes that had kept the Celestials tied down. “Ladies, if you’d be so kind as to release my crew.”

He didn’t wait for any of them to answer. With an unnatural speed Fai was on Seishirou and the two were coming to blows. The air around them was uneasy: seething with power and churning like a storm, and while Kurogane had no magical aptitude of his own, he was sure the static in the air belonged to Fai’s magic. 

Tomoyo came to his side and began pulling at the rope immediately. Her hair was a mess and he could see where her wrists had been bound, the skin red and angry and sure to bruise. There was a red mark on the side of her face that suggested she’d been recently slapped. Kurogane didn’t know what Seishirou had done to her, but he did know what he was going to do to Seishirou.

As soon as the ropes loosened and fell away Tomoyo threw herself into Kurogane’s arms. She didn’t sob or shake or weep, she only held him tight and thanked the gods. The two of them took a few, selfish seconds to hold each other, but Kurogane knew Fai would need back up and Tomoyo needed to help free the rest of the crew.

He hadn’t been fool enough to bring his stun pistol on this trip -- the last thing he needed was to receive a reprimand for taking Federation equipment off-site on top of everything else -- but at the moment he wished he’d chanced it, especially since he’d helped Sakura escape anyway. The past was the past, though, and Kurogane was never unarmed.

It was unorthodox, and admittedly experimental, but it was better than nothing.

A few years ago he’d volunteered for a prototype implant, something that was being developed so that guards and officers were never without a weapon. It lived under his skin and it was going to finally be put to good use, hours of testing and months of combat training were all about to pay off in one go.

The implant was hardwired into his nervous system, so all it took was a careful, deliberate thought before a laser edge sword appeared in his palm, lightweight and warm and deadly. The skin of his palm was cleanly sliced open, cauterized closed once more by the very reason for the damage, blood dripped down his forearm, there was a reason this was a last resort.

Kurogane charged Seishirou from the side without warning, aiming for his chest, hoping to hit a vital organ, if a Blight even had organs. He’d never bothered to read the post mortem reports.

Seishirou dodged with little effort, but Fai and Kurogane were undeterred, regrouping easily and charging him once more, driving him further away from the still defenseless crew. He dodged them easily, moving with inhumanly fluid movements, and Kurogane couldn’t help but feel like they were somehow being played. He didn’t have time to think about it, however, because Seishirou was on the offensive. 

Thick, black tendrils shot from Seishirou’s hands, fast and powerful, carving out gashes into the deck and forcing Fai and Kurogane back until they were a measly few steps in front of the crew.

“It really is a shame,” Seishirou said. “The pirate charade was so convenient. And the quick way is so much less enjoyable, but you two have forced my hand.”

A deep breath was the only warning they had before Seishirou began to dissolve into nothing but a pitch black miasma. Kurogane and Fai readied for an attack, but one never came. Instead, Seishirou’s new from rumbled terribly, cracking the bio-hull that kept air on the ship, allowing them all to breathe. 

“No!” But Fai’s cry fell on deaf ears -- or on no ears at all as the case were -- and as he lashed out one final time Seishirou’s miasma slipped away into the Outer, widening the cracks in the bio-hull as he went.

Wind kicked up and surrounded the ship in a whirling gale. Fai stood at the center, pale and winded and clearly at his limits. 

“Which one of you is the chief engineer?” Kurogane called over the screams of the wind. Hokuto stepped up, reluctantly releasing Subaru’s hand. “Get those cracks fixed now, before your captain passes out!”

With a curt nod she was off, calling over her shoulder “Not even three minutes Captain! You can do it!”

So long as it hadn’t shattered completely, bio-hulls were easy to repair by design. It wouldn’t do for something so important to be difficult. Building them up took years and replacements sometimes cost more than the ship they would protect. 

Kurogane came to stand by Fai, hovering close as support, but knowing better than to touch someone who was actively using their magic, no matter how rare the gift. 

“I don’t- _haa_ \-- I don’t know how much longer I can- can _last_ , Kuro-sama,” Fai said. His eyes were growing dull even as Kurogane watched, exhaustion bleeding the color from his skin and leaving him pale and clammy. He only had seconds left in him.

“Don’t you dare quit on me now,” Kurogane growled. The wind around them was beginning to falter. If it fell they’d all be without air in a matter of seconds. “Not after all of this, not after everything back on Babylon-X. You’re better than that!”

The smile was weak, hardly more than a twitch of those soft, clever lips that had touched Kurogane’s own. “Dunno about that, thought I was-- _ahh_ , was a worthless thief.”

“If we all die you’ll never be able to prove me wrong!” Kurogane shouted, too angry and, he couldn’t deny it, too scared to do anything else.

“No one is dying today.” 

Bright light made Kurogane turn. Behind Fai, the three Celestials began to glow. They joined hands with Sakura in the middle as Tomoyo and Meiling reached out to Fai, resting their hands on his shoulders. The light of their magic engulfed Fai and as it did the exhaustion fell from his face, giving way to a look of awe.

“The source of all life is light, and none of us will sit idly by while the darkness of death threatens.” The words were spoken directly into Kurogane’s mind and heart, they rang through him like a bell tolling an absolute truth and soothed his frayed nerves. Fai’s gale stabilized, and Fai stood taller under their hands with triumph glowing in his eyes. 

The last few minutes ticked by slowly. It felt like even the ship itself was holding its breath, waiting for the all clear announcement. In those minutes Kurogane’s eyes never once left Fai’s. Only when Hokuto’s voice came crackling over the ship’s intercom did he turn away.

Slowly, Fai lowered the howling wind to a halt and for a second everything was still. Then, the ship erupted into cheers, sounds of victory echoing across the deck and even from the halls below. They had found the Celestials and everyone was safe and alive.

Fai jabbed at the intercom button on the wall with a fierce grin. “Kusanagi! Set course for Babylon-X, we have some ladies to escort home!”

* * * *

“And she used to be into fashion design, but she figured engineering was more practical,” Tomoyo chattered excitedly. She and Hokuto had really hit it off and now she was all Tomoyo could talk about; it was like when she’d first met Sakura all over again. “You wouldn’t _believe_ how much overlap the two have though. Kurogane, she’s some sort of _genius_ and she’s going to come see me when her ship docks here again.”

Kurogane raised an eyebrow. He knew Tomoyo and the others were hoping to arrange a full pardon for the pirates as thanks, and for Kurogane in regards to the somewhat tricky legal situation he’d found himself in regarding his part in the Stars flying the coop. He hadn’t had a chance to ask Fai about his plans after that. He supposed he shouldn’t have expected Fai to change his ways, but still… he’d been hoping Fai would stick around.

“I know, I know,” Tomoyo continued, for once misreading his expression. “I have Meiling-chan and Sakura-chan, but Meiling-chan likes her too, and Sakura-chan seems awfully taken with Meiling-chan’s cousin.” There was a playful wickedness twinkling in Tomoyo’s eyes and Kurogane made a mental note to give Syaoran a bit of warning. 

“Hokuto-chan said they’d be setting sail an hour after sunrise,” Tomoyo said suddenly. “We can’t really drag our feet about this so,” she turned to Kurogane and took his hand. There was a sudden sadness about her. “Hurry up, your apartment is a good twenty minute run from the docks.”

Kurogane could only blink down at his sister. “What?” he said stupidly. His heart clenched painfully, like it knew before he did what was happening.

“Sakura-chan went on ahead of us,” Tomoyo said. “She was hoping no one noticed she’d been missing the last few days, but they have.”

That didn’t bode well, but Kurogane had been sure if they’d come back with the Sun and Moon, his part in helping the Stars escape could be pardoned. The look on Tomoyo’s face was telling him otherwise, and he had no doubt she knew. She always did. He would like to think Souma would speak up for him, but even if she did, he knew she didn’t have the weight to throw around to help him.

“You’ll spend the rest of your life in prison!” Tomoyo cried when Kurogane hesitated. “You and I both know you only stay here because I’m the Moon, but if you stay and get imprisoned you won’t even have me around. Go follow what makes you happy, go with Fai and the others before you’re all captured.”

“Tomoyo, I-” he tried, but she shook her head. 

“I’ll still be here, but you have to live your life, Kurogane, not mine. Your freedom will open up many other doors, and I know it will bring you back here again,” she said with a small, watery smile. “Nothing could keep you away for long.”

Several heartbeats passed them by as Kurogane waged a war against himself. When he bent to place a kiss on Tomoyo’s forehead they both knew which side had won.

Punishment for endangering an entire planet was absolute, intentions be damned. Even if the Celestials defended them to the Federation it would only be enough to waive the death sentence and land Kurogane and anyone else implicated with a life in chains. There was sure to be someone watching his apartment, he knew his best bet was to go right back to the ship and set sail with the rising of the sun.

Heart heavy he followed back alleys and lesser-used roads to the end of the port where Fai’s ship was docked. 

“Kuro-sama?” Fai was halfway up the gangplank when Kurogane stepped into the light of the ship. “What are you doing here?”

Deliberately, Kurogane made his way up the gangplank until he stood even with Fai. “Do you know the penalty for kidnapping a Celestial?”

“They know you didn’t take Tomoyo-chan and Meiling-chan, even if they want to blame us,” Fai said stepping closer to Kurogane.

“I helped Sakura get out of the temple when she wasn’t meant to leave. That’s as good as kidnapping,” he said. “I’m a thief.”

Fai watched, stunned into silence, as Kurogane held out his officer badge and tossed it into the maze of crates and replacement piping to be found in a few hours by the squadron sent to collect him. 

To Fai’s credit it only took him a minute to realize what Kurogane was implying and get himself together. Coy smile in place Fai grabbed ahold of the collar of Kurogane’s shirt. “You’ve got a lot to learn, sea pup.”

“With how much you like to talk I’ll be caught up in no time, _captain_.”

It was their second kiss, warmed by the fresh light of the rejuvenated sun as it spilled over the ship in a glowing sunrise and burned away the shadows. For Kurogane it was not only a new dawn, but a new life as well.

**Author's Note:**

> One day I might expand into a sequel where they hunt down Seishirou. Maybe. Who knows.


End file.
